Kenny stocks up on pace, energy and versatility

Stephen Kenny named two fresh faces in his Republic of Ireland squad on Wednesday, both full of pace and versatile enough to operate across a variety of positions.

And if the inclusion CJ Hamilton and Festy Ebosele - plus the return of Michael Obafemi - underlined the direction Kenny sees his team going over the next couple of years, the absence of Aaron Connolly is a reminder that this train is moving fast.

Not so long ago the Galway attacker was viewed as a crucial outlet in the top third; now he's got work to do make it back into the squad.

Kenny said Connolly was left out due to a long-standing heel problem, though the boss also conceded his loan move to Middlesbrough from Brighton last January wasn't as successful as all parties would have hoped.

"Aaron doesn't feel right himself. He feels the heel in which he has been getting injections to play has been causing him a lot of discomfort.

"He has had a loan period. When you talk to people in England when you're going around the clubs, a lot of coaches, they say to disregard a player’s first loan. That’s a saying they have.

"They say most first loans are not always successful. He played a lot of games for Middlesbrough and that was a good experience for him, and I’m sure if he has another loan move he will be better for it."

Conversely Obafemi (above) - who has excelled at Swansea over the last few months - earned plenty of praise for his renaissance. The 21-year-old looks certain to add to his sole Irish cap in June when Ireland play four Nations League games in ten days - against Armenia, Scotland and Ukraine twice.

"I've been to Swansea a few times, obviously, because we have Michael there and Cyrus Christie and Ryan Manning playing together," Kenny added.

"It's the first